It’s been a couple of days since my last blog -I figure there was the worship service on Sunday and then Monday I try to have a day off. The day off wasn’t possible yesterday though as I was doing a KCML Bubble Lecture last night so needed to spend some time preparing for that -as well as that COVID19 parenting/work juggle with time helping with Reuben’s island on the deck (which is continuing… watch this space), some time helping explore ANZAC soldiers, and of course the ongoing transition of space to dance studio, study space, zoom venue and a place to rest and connect. Today we said goodbye to our foster puppy who we had with us for longer than the average SPCA foster, so she managed to wiggle her way further into our hearts. Perhaps in this time of lockdown, emotions are heightened too, so the goodbye was more emptying. The process of emptying and filling seems to be more obvious these days. Perhaps it is useful to recognise the things that empty us and the things that fill us, so we can find ourselves in a space where we are not trying to operate out of emptiness.

I am filled by spending time with those I love –their cuddles, their affirmation, their wanting to be in my presence. I am filled by zoom calls with friends and emails and texts that show care. I am filled by my time spent especially with God. I am filled by my work and the amazing colleagues I get to work with. I am filled when I share a screen with a bunch of children eager to share in Guiding. I am filled when I walk by the beach. I am filled when I hear there are no new COVID19 cases in our land. But I am emptied too... by the pain I hear around me in our nation and in our world; by the hurt in my children, by the anxiety that is creeping into our lives, by the dumb things I say sometimes.

What about you? What empties you and what fills you? I don’t think we should expect to be always overflowing in this time –but we need to be more full than empty in general, in order to move into tomorrow. How is your cup?